Predator's Code
by Teh Seraph
Summary: After a night out on the town, Jak and Daxter find themselves lost in the middle of nowhere. An encounter with an almost blind stranger gets them caught up in the prelude to a massive war, where beast fights beast. Rated M for violence.
1. The Beginning

Me: Hihihihihihihi! 'Tis my first ficcie!

Abbie: You don't say.

Eevee: Eh, this is Meg we're talking about.

Abbie: Point.

Me: …

Abbie: Psst... Meg. That's your cue for the summary.

Me: Wha - ? Really? Ohhh. Right. Anyhoo, this little ficcie is gonna be HUGE (I'm jumping in at the deep end). It mostly focuses around the Metal Heads, because they don't get enough love. And this time round, the Metal Heads are the good guys! Well, some of them. It's sort of a Metal Head civil war.

Eevee: Quit rambling and get on with it.

Me: But rambling's fun!

Torn: -From off screen- GET ON WITH IT!

Me: -Sigh- Anyhoo, Jak gets drunk with the rest of the blokes and ends up 300 miles from Haven in the middle of the Wastelands. What will happen? And what the hell do Metal Heads have to do with all this?

Abbie: -Quiet applause-

Me: DISCLAIMER TIME! I do not own Jak and Daxter, because if I did then the whole Ashelin business at the end of J3 would never have happened!

Written To: Moonlight Shadow – Special D

_

* * *

_

_Jak's commentary_

"Speech"

"YELLING!"

'_Thoughts'_

((Me popping into the story to explain something or other.))

_**Song lyrics**_

* * *

_It all started when the gang invited me out for a drink. It had been six years since I had somehow landed up in Haven. It had been a very bumpy ride. Dark eco, ottsels, more dark eco, exile, light eco, parents, cyborgs, love, poison, races, lunatics with obsessions with C4… You name it, we had it. For two years my life had been adventure-free and I was enjoying it. However, my life had constantly been in the public eye. I had devoted myself to being the hero the people of Haven wanted, not the hero I wanted to be. But, as you probably know, alcohol is the answer to (And cause of) all life's little problems._

"Heeeyy, Jakkie-boy!"

"Wha – ? Oh lords, not now, Jinx…"

"Well, if you're gonna be like that then I might as well not tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"We're heading down to the Ottsel for a piss-up. But, you probably ain't comin'."

"And why the hell not?"

"'Cause yer in one o' yer moods."

"You could've just said you were going to pissed!"

"Does that mean ya wanna come?"

"Yes."

"WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP?" Oh boy. Ashe was mad. She wasn't best pleased with all the yelling going on outside her room.

"Yeah, you could have invited us along!" Keira was also moderately miffed. She was feeling a tad snubbed.

"Hey, women shouldn't get pissed." Jinx sighed, only to be countered by three voices yelling in unison;

"CHAUVINISTIC PIG!" Eeyup, the girls were not happy. The trio marched out of the room, each of them wearing a very angry look upon their faces (Although Tess less so, for it is bloody hard to give someone the look of ultimate disdain when you are two feet tall, fuzzy and downright adorable in all definitions of the word). Ashelin kneed Jinx in the balls, pinned him against the wall and slapped him silly until he screamed for mercy.

A tattooed face peered around the wall. "What in the name of the Precursors is going on here?" Ashe dropped Jinx, who promptly scuttled off to find an ice pack or three.

"Jinx was being a chauvinist again…"

"Is that it?"

"Well, he said women shouldn't get pissed…" Yup, even Ashelin didn't want to get on her husband's bad side. Torn had a nasty temper (Although not nearly as nasty as Jak's could be), and although he didn't particularly like Jinx, he probably wouldn't have appreciated the yelling and screaming his red-headed wife had caused.

"Well, wherever the hell he is now, I'm gonna be having words with him. He's wired the door up with plastic explosives again..." With that, Torn skulked off to find Jinx, muttering curses under his breath. The dialogue that followed was so colourful that I'll probably be banned the moment this s put up if I type it here, so I'll leave that bit to your imagination. In short, there was lots of swearing, and a very annoyed Jinx (Because he was lumped with the job of defusing the explosives).

After a fair bit of conflict, the group arrived at Daxter's pad, the Naughty Ottsel. Sig was the first to order a drink, followed by Jinx and Jak. Daxter simply waited for them to get wasted before starting his booze (He wanted to be able to remember all the stupid stuff they did so he could use it as blackmail material). However, two hours later, the whole lot of them were completely and utterly rat-arsed (Including Daxter). The only mildly sober people were the three women, and even they were slightly tipsy.

Suddenly, Jinx's voice rang out through the bar; "I have a cunning plan!"

"Dish wun better not be like yer LASHT cunnin' plan…" Jak was by far the most drunk of the group, having had far less experience with alcohol than the others. Yup, Jak was a lightweight, and it was a miracle he was still conscious.

"Yer, ish better awright!"

"GERRONWIVIT!" Sig yelled, whacking his fist down on the table (And spilling his drink while doing so).

"Roight. Well… I shay.. we go… EKSHPLOWINK!" That last word translates roughly into 'Exploring' for those who don't speak Drunk.

"'Shplorin'? We do 'at evry day!" Torn piped up, downing the rest of his pint.

"Das not the point. We can do shupid stuff!"

"YAAAYYY!" The whole congregation (Barring the women) exclaimed at once as they stumbled towards the door.

"HOLD IT!" The group halted abruptly as Ashelin yelled. "Where the hell do you think you're going? You're unarmed, you're not in the right gear, you don't have food or water, and you're blind drunk!" There was a long, uncomfortable silence until Daxter yelled; "But it'll be fun!"

"YEAH!" With that, the whole group charged off, piling into the hovercar. Jak took the wheel and sped off immediately, with Daxter riding on the bumper. The vehicle headed right towards the wastelands, probably the most inhospitable place you could think of in the mob's reach.

Outside the bar, the three women stared up at the sky in the direction the blokes had headed off in.

"Well," Keira sighed, "Looks like we'll be taking Shanks' Mare."

The group nodded solemnly and began the slow walk back to the Freedom League HQ, where they could be able to pick up the drunkard's tracks. At least they had radar…

* * *

Me: So there you have it. The first chappie of my little fic. It's not great, but the quality will get better in the next chapter. It's crap because I really don't like this little scene.

Abbie: What's wrong with drunkards?

Me: It's hard to write with them. Ah well, at least they'll be hung over in the next chapter. Now THAT'S fun.

Torn: -From off screen- You know, I have my gun right here…

Me: Erm… -Runs off gibbering madly, followed by Abbie-

Eevee: Well, as those two seem a bit preoccupied, please R & R. Or I'll sic Torn on you.

Abbie: -From off screen- Bad Eevee!

NOTE: 'Shanks' Mare' is Brit for 'walking'.


	2. Hangovers, Storms and CrossDressers

Me: Well, hope you enjoyed the first chapter. This one will be better, I promise!

Eevee: Uh… Can I ask a question?

Me: Shoot.

Eevee: … Cross-Dressers?

Me: All will be explained.

Abbie: Do we even want to know?

Me: That's debatable. Anyway, I don't own Jak and Daxter. But it would be so damn awesome if I did.

Written To: Every Time I Look For You – Blink 182/ Blue and Yellow – The Used

* * *

_Jak's commentary_

"Speech"

"YELLING!"

_'Thoughts'_

((Me popping into the story to explain something or other.))

_**Song lyrics

* * *

**_

_So, we were stuck in the middle of the Wastelands, and we were all hung over. I had somehow managed to crash the hovercar, and none of us were going to try and repair while we were hung over. So, instead of doing the sensible thing and waiting to be picked up, we went off in search of something to eat or drink. That was when the trouble began._

_And yes, you will get an explanation of the whole cross-dressers business._

"I swear, I am not touching another drop as long as I live." Torn sighed, rubbing his head.

"Eh, you'll take that back once we get our sorry asses back in Haven." Yes, even when he was hung over Jinx could be a wise guy.

"How much you willing to bet?"

"Fifty."

"Done!"

Jak shook his head, massaging his temples gently. "Will you two knock it off? There are more important things here than betting."

Jinx looked rather confused. "Name one."

"Oh, I don't know, food? Water?"

"Oh, that. Right."

Sig looked out over the wastelands, sighing. "Come on. We gotta find something to drink, or… you know what'll happen."

"Good call." Torn had removed one of his boots to shake the sand out of it, and was now hastily pulling it back on. The rest of the group got to their feet slowly, following the dogged wastelander as he set off. Torn ran after them as soon as he actually got his boot past his heat-swollen heel, using his weight to push it into a comfortable position on his foot. He slowed down to a reasonable pace as soon as he reached the group, trying to look as though nothing had happened, despite the odd look Daxter shot him.

The company wandered aimlessly for at least two hours before the winds began to pick up. Sig, the most experienced member of the group, was the only one concerned about this. The others simply told him to stop worrying and to keep going. This was their downfall.

Soon, the winds turned into a massive, full-scale desert storm, whipping the sand about. Shielding their eyes from the swirling dust, the group headed over to the wadi, where the cliff concealed a mall cave. Sig knew this area, although any further south and he would be horribly lost. Under his leadership, they managed to barely climb into the shelter provided by the cavern.

Torn collapsed to the ground, releasing a deep breath. "We all here?"

"Uh… What would you say if I said no?" Jinx sighed, looking around nervously.

"All right, who's – Oh, fuck." It had just hit Torn who was missing. The Demolition Duo weren't there.

"Come on, they can't be far!" Jinx yelled above the noise of the wind outside, before Sig stopped him.

"Are you mad? You'd have to be crazy to go out in that storm! Jak knows how to survive. He's probably safe."

Jinx took a brief look at the cave entrance before returning his gaze to Sig. "You'd better be right."

The trio weren't the only ones in the cavern. Four metal heads were watching them through piercing yellow eyes, concealing themselves in the darkness. Until…

"A-CHOO!"

"Wha - ? Damnit, did you have to do that?"

"It wasn't my fault! My nose tickled!"

"Eh, this happens _every_ time we take you out on a mission…"

"What the crap?" Torn looked over to where the voices came from, only to see four pairs of glowing yellow eyes peering back. "Um… Sig? You do have Peacemaker with you, right?"

"…"

"…Right?"

"Well, I um…"

"Guh… Jinx, do you have anything?"

"Not even a grenade."

"Shit. Okay, let's assess the situation. We are stuck in a cave on the side of a dried-up river, Jak and Daxter are missing, and we are 'sharing' this place with four goddamn metal heads."

"Hey, we're not all that bad!" The metal head that sneezed piped up, looking indignant.

"Don't try it, Biter."

"Yeah, last time you said that Spectre got a round of ammo lodged in his tail!"

"I'm still bitter about that, y'know."

"Aw, shaddap."

There was a short silence as the quartet of metal heads looked over at the trio of humans. Biter was holding something that looked suspiciously like popcorn. "Keep arguing, we don't want to interrupt anything."

"Yeah this is getting good." Spectre agreed, nodding his head slowly.

Jinx sighed and looked back outside. "Come on, you two. The wind's dying down."

A third metal head, which was called Slash, cut him off. "And if you leave this cave, we will tear you limb from limb, and use your intestines as stockings."

There was a long, uncomfortable pause.

"…You wear stockings?"

"NOT THE POINT!"

Biter looked at Slash's hindquarters, to see a pair of stockings made of something that looked unnervingly like human flesh. "You know, I've been working with you for nine years, Slash, and I never noticed that you were a cross-dresser."

* * *

Me: Yup, that's Chapter Two done. Apologies for lack of witty ending note, but I'm tired. Please R & R! 

NOTE: I have nothing against cross-dressers.


	3. Darkness Falls

Me: Searching for the things to say... to keep you right here waiting…

Abbie: OMGWTFBBQ?

Eevee: Too much Staind does that to you.

Me: I hope you're not intending… to be so condescending… it's as much as I can take…

Eevee: One moment. –Picks Seraph up by the collar and slaps her silly-

Me: Oooooww!

Abbie: At least you've stopped singing.

Me: Come on, it's a good song!

Eevee: Does this even have anything to do with the fic?

Me: No.

Abbie: No.

Eevee: In that case, get on with it.

Me: -Grumbles- All right, all right… On with the chapter!

Abbie: What about the disclaimer?

Me: Wha - ? Disclaimer? Oh right, disclaimer!

Abbie: -Shifty eyes- … WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DID YOU DO WITH OUR MEG?

Me: Calm down. My brain melted. Anyhoo, I don't own J&D, so hopefully the nice people at Naughty Dog won't sue my pants off. Have a nice day!

Eevee: Yeah, that's her. Nobody else would say 'sue my pants off'.

Abbie: …Right…

Me: On with the fic!

Written To: Right Here – Staind (What else?)

_Jak's commentary_

"Speech"

"YELLING!"

'_Thoughts'_

((Me popping into the story to explain something or other.))

_**Song lyrics**_

_Bio-speak (It shall be explained!)_

_Those guys' experience in that cave has to rank as one of the weirdest they've had. And when you remember that an average day contains a large amount of guns, violence, alcohol and paperwork then you realise that it is pretty damn weird._

_Now, Dax and I were horribly lost. We only realised we weren't with the rest of the group when the winds died down, so we set off in the direction we thought they'd be. Turns out we should have stayed where we were. But where's the fun in that?_

"Are we there yet?" Daxter was fed up. He hated exercise in any shape or form, and today was no exception.

"For the thousandth time, no."

"Well, where the hell are we?"

"The middle of nowhere."

"Can you be any less vague?"

"Look Dax, if I knew where we were, we wouldn't be lost."

"Point."

Jak collapsed under a spindly acacia tree, making the best of what little shade it offered. He took several deep breaths, as though trying to calm himself down.

"You okay, buddy?" Daxter being concerned was a rare sight, but today Jak saw it. The ottsel sat down beside his companion, looking up at him through blue eyes.

"I'm fine." Jak was, in fact, lying. He wasn't okay.

"C'mon, I know when something ain't right. And something ain't right. So, what the hell ain't right?"

Jak looked down at Daxter, speaking with his eyes. He didn't want to talk about it.

"… Oh. Right. Yeah, um… Well…" The ottsel knitted his brow for a while. "Why don't you try and let him out for a while? It's not like anything would _live_ here."

"You're joking, right?" Jak looked down at the two-foot rodent like he was mad.

"Hey, do you have any better ideas?"

"No, but-"

"Exactly."

Jak reluctantly nodded slightly, getting to his feet. Daxter scuttled up the tree, digging his sharp claws into the frail bark. He'd had nasty experiences when this happened. Jak took yet another deep breath, before he let go.

Daxter watched through fearful blue eyes as his companion's skin went from a tan to deathly pale gray. Horns sprouted from his forehead, and his cold blue eyes grew even colder as they turned black, whites and all. If you only shot him a brief glance then you could think that all that was left was his sockets. His nails extended into dangerous-looking claws, and his once blond hair was now dark gray. Jak was no more. Dark Jak had taken over.

The ottsel shut his eyes tight about halfway through his friend's transformation. Even now it frightened the living daylights out of him. The eco-being looked upwards slightly, as though registering something. Without warning, he shot off, on the hunt.

Less than half a mile from the duo, a young woman had found something that could save her life; a gazelle carcass. With powerful teeth she ripped it open, kicking away one or two of the vultures that were in her way. She was about to take a bite when she heard something;

_Anger. Bloodlust. Want to kill._

The small woman got to her feet, tensing her scrawny muscles. The vultures had heard it too, and took flight immediately. She looked about through useless eyes; only the vaguest outlines of the endless dunes were seen. It was her nose that told her the exact location of the approaching creature; it was behind her. She whirled around, only to be knocked down by a powerful force that she couldn't identify. She rolled over onto her belly, keeping her gaze low.

"Look, i-if this is your kill, I'll go. I don't want any trouble here."

She was answered by a swipe at her face, drawing blood.

"MERCY!"

Her assailant said nothing, sending a rain of blows at the woman. With all her strength, she got to her feet again and fled, and the beast made hot pursuit. The nomad woman knew her stamina wouldn't hold out, and her pursuer's bio was thundering in her ears, telling her he was still following. Blood gushed from the wounds on her face, though they weren't deep enough to scar.

Suddenly, an ear-piercing roar came from behind them. Both parties halted immediately, and although the nomad couldn't see what had made it, she could smell him. She vaguely recognised the scent, but she couldn't put a name to it. The dark beast switched his target, charging at the newcomer. The two blokes locked head on, fighting like a pair of wildcats. The fighting stopped as suddenly as it started, with an equally loud, equally guttural noise; the newcomer screamed. His left eyeball was hanging from one of Dark Jak's claws. He gave an angry growl and skulked off.

"You're gonna regret this…"

He left quickly, leaving a trail of blood that dripped from his empty socket where a piercing, acid green eye had once been. Dark Jak shook the eyeball from his claw and turned back to the nomad, who was rooted to the spot from fear. Her pale, golden eyes locked onto his bottomless, jet black ones. He began advancing on her, and she ran again, her feet striking the ground with insane force.

After less than a mile of running, the woman screeched to a halt. She was standing on the edge of the canyon carved out by the Great River. She looked back, seeing only her attacker's outline advancing quickly. The river coursed through the walls of stone, and she looked down again. She was trapped between two evils. She locked the muscles in her legs, then with a massive surge of energy, she leaped downwards.

"Makire, receive me!"

Me: So there you have it. Two OCs introduced in one chapter!

Abbie: W00T!

Torn: Well, at least there were no cross-dressing freaks this time…

Eevee: I second that.

Me: Please R&R! PLEEEEEAAAAAASSSSEEE!


	4. Lights Out

Me: Hallo, people! Now, you're probably not wondering where I went, but I'll tell you anyway. I haven't had the Internet for the past… -Counts on fingers- three weeks. AOL was being a complete a-hole, and we couldn't find another ISP anywhere. So, I have been Internet deprived. Also, an advance apology for the short chappie.

Abbie: Pity her, damn you!

Eevee: … Damnit, what was in those painkillers?

Me: I'd rather not know, thanks.

Abbie: …

Me: You spiked them, didn't you?

Abbie: … No.

Eevee: DON'T LIE TO HER!

Abbie: -Puppy dog eyes-

Eevee: Guh… all right, all right. I'll let you live _this_ time.

Abbie: YAY!

Me: You know… it's probably a good thing we don't own J&D.

Eevee: Amen.

Written To: The score to 'A Thousand Miles' – Vanessa Carlton

* * *

_Jak's commentary_

"Speech"

"YELLING!"

'_Thoughts'_

((Me popping into the story to explain something or other.))

_**Song lyrics**_

_Bio-speak_

* * *

_I've got to admit, it felt a bit weird. The woman chose to commit suicide rather than be killed. I'm still not sure whether she was brave or cowardly. Whatever she was, she was gone and that was that. Back in Haven, trouble was brewing. Nobody had the faintest idea what was about to happen._

The city was as normal that night. It was about four a.m., and Ashelin was desperately trying to pick up her friends' tracks. So far, the AI was simply spiting her. She swore quietly and kept panning across the screen, trying to see some sort of blip over the wastelands. Suddenly, everything went black.

It took the baroness' eyes about five minutes to get used to the dark, but once she could actually see, she instinctively reached for the pistols she kept holstered at her waist. Hesitantly, she walked over to the door, waiting for it to open automatically. Nothing happened. She placed her hand on the ID pad next to the door. Still nothing. She sighed and tried to figure out how the hell she was going to get out of the small radar dome at the very top of the Freedom League HQ. She knew shooting at the door wouldn't help; it, along with all the others in the building, had been built to withstand a hell of a lot more than pistol bullets. She swallowed her pride for a moment, then yelled for help extremely loud.

In less than a minute, Keira, Tess, Samos and at least four guards were standing outside the room, having all heard their ledrene's call for help.

"Ashe? What's going on?" The ottsel asked, pressing her large, furry ear up against the door, sticking her thick tail out for balance while standing on Keira's shoulder.

"I'm sort of stuck. What happened, anyway? Was it a power outage or what?"

"I think so." Was all Keira said before she began barking orders to the guards, and they scrambled about in the dark, trying to find something they could prise the exit open with. Ten minutes later, they had jammed a large, conveniently located steel shaft into the door, and were now forcing it open. Samos was looking increasingly irritable, glancing about in the gloom. He twiddled his overgrown beard a bit, watching as Ashelin clambered out of the room over the bar that was holding it open. She landed on the other side after the rather ungainly operation of getting both legs over the pole without causing an extreme amount of pain in an area I refuse to write about.

About ten minutes later, after navigating the labyrinth of stairs that connected the separate floors of the building for just such a situation, the eight people had found their way into the underground generator room. Keira fumbled about in the dark (None of the torches they had located worked) for the switch to activate the generator, flipping it as soon as she found it. Nothing happened.

"Damnit, Ashe? Could ya try and find another torch? I'm gonna check the wiring."

Without waiting for a reply she walked slowly over to the main generator, plucking her ever faithful screwdriver and removing the metal plate that kept the internal workings of the machine hidden. Ashelin meandered about, squinting about to try and see anything that could create a bit of light. Her eyes were used to the dark by now, but she couldn't say she wouldn't appreciate some illumination. Unfortunately, there was nothing of any use in the room.

"Can you make do without? There's nothing in here."

"Well, all right, I'll give it a shot."

Poking her head cautiously into the large opening, she peered about, trying to see anything that could be out of place. As far as she could make out, everything was intact. She had done one of her routine checks two days ago, but you could never trust machinery. Still, it all seemed in order. She pulled her head out and replaced the cover, quickly twiddling the screws back into place.

"It should be working. This is not normal…"

"And since when did normal come into the average day here?"

Samos fidgeted with his beard a bit more, quite pleased with his point. Hid daughter simply sighed and said nothing, still trying to work out what could have happened to completely screw up the entire city's power output.

"Have we tried contacting Vin?"

"Twice, nothing's working."

The guards weren't being much help. They were as clueless as the rest of the group on the current situation. Suddenly, something clicked in Keira's mind.

"Shit."

Upon seeing the confused expressions the others were wearing, she proceeded to explain.

"EMP. Our generators are down, contact's been cut, everything. Not even the wireless stuff is working, like those torches. There's no other explanation."

Everybody in that room's thoughts consisted of a single word; '_Shit_'.

* * *

Me: Guess what I've been watching!

Eevee: Oh, that's easy. War of the Worlds.

Me: You're not meant to _tell_ them!

Eevee: You wanna argue with me?

Abbie: Trust me; it's not a good idea.

Me: Uh… I'll give it a miss, thanks.

Eevee: Right answer.

Abbie: -Wipes sweat off forehead- Phew.

Me: Erm… R&R? Prease?


	5. Up Shit Creek Without A Paddle

Me: -Is on the phone to Abbie- Bye!

Abbie: Bye!

Me: Bye!

Abbie: Love you!

Me: Bye!

Abbie: Bye!

Me: Wait, WHAT?

Abbie: -Click-

Me: -Looks at Abbie, who is in fact standing next to her- What the crap?

Abbie: Don't ask if you know what's good for you.

Eevee: Trust me, you don't want to know.

Me: I'll take your word for it.

Abbie: Good girl. –Pats Seraph on the head-

Me: Ahhhh! Scary woman!

Abbie: Someone needs a hu-ug!

Me: No! NO! –Is pounced on by Abbie- AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH! –Scrambles about on the floor, promptly knocking over at least three cameras-

Eevee: Uhhh… We seem to be having a few technical difficulties. Please do not adjust your monitor, and please keep in mind that we three don't own Jak and Daxter. Thank you, and enjoy the chapter.

* * *

Written To: Runaway – Linkin Park –Moshes– 

_Jak's commentary_

"Speech"

"YELLING!"

'_Thoughts'_

((Me popping into the story to explain something or other.))

_**Song lyrics**_

_Bio-speak_

_I didn't know what was going on back in the city. At that exact moment, I think all I really knew was that I had been outsmarted, and I didn't like it. And, well, you know how pissy Dark Jak is…_

_

* * *

Her limp body crashed against the great sandstone walls of the canyon, carried by the raging torrent. The cold had numbed her body to the point where she could feel nothing, and she was almost completely unaware of her surroundings. Only the faintest notion and briefly stirring memories told her where she was. The water had sapped her strength, and she felt no desire to struggle. This was her end._

Dark Jak stared down angrily at the water, watching resentfully as the incapacitated body of his prey was swept away. A decision was made in his bloodthirsty mind to follow the nomad's passage downriver, in case she somehow survived the terrible journey.

Minutes, hours, days passed, and still the river carried the nomad, heading away to the east. Slowly, almost unnoticeably, the river slowed down, and the walls began to lower the closer the predator (and his quarry) grew to the sea. The woman slipped in and out of consciousness, no longer able to differentiate between the two states. Water began to fill her lungs, but some strange instinct told her to keep going. Her sluggish mind pondered a single question; why was she not dead? Had Makire forsaken her? Had her people forgotten her? She was unaware of the dark creature that hounded her, his stamina rarely faltering as he slowed to a leisurely pace, moving with the water.

Suddenly, she felt solid ground beneath her. The change in the pressure, and the feeling of air, not water, above her was frightening, and she felt terror wash through her weak, bedraggled body. The river had, for some reason that she could not discern, carried her to safety. She struggled for breath, coughing and hacking to expel liquid from her lungs. Her body was devoid of vigour, and she knew it was her time. She took in a deep breath of air – how sweet, how glorious it was after having only breathed when the river allowed her – and held it for a second, as though calling on some old, buried memory. Then she released the air in a long, laborious cry. Water rolled from her shredded ears as she took another breath, and then resumed her chorus. She cared not for the sound of splashing water, although normally such a thing would have spurred her instincts into action.

Dark Jak was furiously swimming across the river, the weak current simply lapping against his powerful body. In less than a minute, he was at the opposite bank, standing over the howling vagrant, claws at the ready. In her dulled state, the woman had no clue of his presence; all she knew was it was nearly her time.

* * *

Elsewhere, three beasts stood, the wind stinging their golden eyes. While they cursed that wind, it carried something to them that without it they would never hear. 

"Is that - ?"

"I think it is."

"Come on, you two. Let's check it out."

There was a unanimous agreement to this statement, and from their vantage point they scanned the sands below. None could see the source of the howl, but they could follow their ears instead. They made for the sound, listening for any directional cues the singer might give. There were none; the song simply faded away, giving no clue as to where the crier was. It was up to their navigational skills.

They did not know it, but time was of the essence, as every second they spent was a second for the eco being to cause the nomad a world of suffering; he liked to 'play' with his kills before dispatching of them. Her arms bore several more scars than there head been, and one of the existing scars on her face had been torn open by his terrible claws. A large chunk of her right ear had been torn off, and many other wounds littered her frail body. The blind woman heard his heartbeat ringing in her ears, striking more terror into her than even his talons. It was the sheer malice in that heartbeat, the anger and hatred coursing through those veins. It was this that reinforced her feeling that it was her time.

Both were so fixated with the other, be it from fear or malevolence, they knew nothing of the trio of metal heads coming towards them. In fact, the only time they were given a clue as to their presence was when it was staring them in the face. A great beast burst from the shade, his black carapace giving him a supernatural appearance. He put himself between the duo, snarling angrily and glaring through his pitch-black eyes. Five growled words escaped his throat;

"It is not her time."

Dark Jak made a lunge for him, but was met mid-air by the other two metal heads, which grappled him to the ground. The largest, a beast named Boomslang, sat on him.

"What do we do with 'em, Shadow?"

He looked at the black creature, which was inspecting the nomad. Boomslang paid little heed to the claws raking along his carapace, although it was written on his face that he wasn't particularly comfortable with it.

Shadow looked up, turning his dark eyes from the woman to the struggling Dark Jak who was currently restrained by his comrade's arse. He thought for a moment, considering his options. He recognised the sat-upon man-beast; everybody did. But the woman – she would be just another parasite, too weak to hunt.

"We'll see what Radagast has to say about them."

He knew that the guilt of leaving someone to die when it was not their time would be far greater than the difficulties presented by getting her back to the camp.

Boomslang no longer felt claws raking against his body; rather, it was now just something pushing against his rump. Looks like his 'captive' had given up on the clawing business. He couldn't say he wasn't grateful. His thoughts were interrupted by an amazingly indignant shout,

"Will someone PLEASE get this fucking thing off me?"

* * *

Me: -Looks up- Blimey. I finished it! -Celebrates chapter-finishing- 

Abbie: No. Of _course_ you didn't.

Me: Cut the sarcasm.

Abbie: Goit.

-Large amounts of bickering ensues-

Eevee: Well, please R&R. It'll shut them up. Maybe.

NOTE: A boomslang is a type of snake. A type of snake with a very cool name.


End file.
